The present invention relates generally to a device for collecting solar energy radiation and more particularly to a device for concentrating radiant solar energy for use with a solar collector device.
Solar energy has been long since thought of as a viable source of energy and it is contemplated that its usage will increase in the coming years. Many varied types of devices have been proposed for concentrating and collecting solar energy.
The devices known to us employ, for example, arcuate mirrors behind a solar collector device to reflect and concentrate solar energy back onto the collector, or a lens, such as a Fresnel lens located in front of a solar collector to concentrate solar energy passing through the lens on to the collector.
These devices for concentrating solar energy must be rotated or otherwise moved to follow the daily or seasonal changes in the position of the sun. These devices are often-times quite large in size to provide a large surface for the impingement of solar energy. Of course, the larger the concentrating device, the larger, more powerful and structurally stronger must be the means for supporting and moving the concentrating device.
In addition, these known types of solar concentrating devices are designed so as to concentrate radiation which impinges along a given axis, and they tend to cast a shadow or shade themselves from the solar radiation when the radiation is impinging at large angles with respect to this axis.